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Fall Gardening Tips and Remembering Summer

Fall gardening tips and to-do’s along with photos of summer flowers and produce. Great for Zone 8!

Swamp Hibiscus White Flower

Summer has come to an end. Autumn officially starts on Saturday, September 22, 2012. It was a hot and dry summer for my area. Drought conditions caused a tough season for plants, trees, and lawns. Rainfall is about 7 inches below normal for the year to date. Thanks to some preparation and a lot of watering, my garden did quite well.

Now is the time to get ready for fall. Here are some autumn tips and to-dos:

  • Fertilize shrubs, trees, and groundcovers now (before the end of September).
  • Fertilize mums for more blooms.
  • Cleanup perennial and annual plants by removing faded flowers and dead foliage.
  • Apply lawn weed preventer in the last week of September. (Check specifics for your lawn type).
  • Inspect outdoor container plants you plan to bring indoors for insects. Treat accordingly.
  • Plant shrubs and trees.
  • Shop for spring flowering bulbs. Do not plant them until late November.

These tips and to-dos are for zone 8. If you live in a different gardening zone you can always check with your local garden center for more information. Also check out Gardenality and Walter Reeves websites for more seasonal gardening information for the south (zone 8).

Remembering summer is easy with photos. My Project 365 has been a great way to document something from each day. Most all the pictures I take are of plants, flowers, and food. I wanted to share a few of my favorites. The first is swamp hibiscus and it bloomed on the second day of summer. The photo of it is at the top of this post.

Heirloom tomatoes were available early. These were some from my local farmers market:

Heirloom Tomatoes

Basil also grew quickly. I had to frequently trim off the flowers to keep it growing and so it would not get bitter:

Basil Blowers

Succulents loved the hot, dry weather. This is a new one I planted this year and I love the pink and green colors:

Green and Pink Succulent

Okra started arriving in the markets. It made for a special treat of fried okra one day:

Okra in a basket

Baby Tut Papyrus always adds interest to my patio. I had to water it almost twice daily to keep it happy:

Baby Tut Papyrus Plant

The miniature white rose plant did wonderfully. It seemed to like being on my deck rail. Now it is planted in my front garden after I accidentally blew it off the rail with my backpack blower (oops).

Miniature White Rose Bud

Obedient plant bloomed later in the season. The flowers are so interesting, like little cups:

Obediant Plant Purple Flowers

Marigold was a blast of color. This is from my friend’s garden. I want to plant some in my garden soon:

Marigold Flower

Are you ready for fall? I am getting there. There is still much to do. And I will miss so much of summer. I will not miss the hot weather though. The cooler temperatures will be so nice.

Tora Estep

Sunday 23rd of September 2012

Beautiful photos. I love the 365 idea. I might have to try that next year. And great garden tips. I definitely need to get out and give my garden some love.

Katherine G

Friday 21st of September 2012

These are great tips to bad I wasn't blessed with a green thumb

amy @ fearless homemaker

Friday 21st of September 2012

I'm ready for fall! I'm sharing your post with the gardener of the household. =) I know he'll love it!

Tiffany

Thursday 20th of September 2012

What beautiful photos! I'm sure you've enjoyed seeing all the lovely colors in your yard this summer. We planted about 100 sq ft of garden this year, but really didn't put a lot of time in it. Half were in containers and the other half in the yard. I plan to at least get some greens in this fall, and maybe plant some ground cover for next year. Of course, if I keep on "planning" and don't start "doing," I'll miss the boat like I did last year!

Renee

Thursday 20th of September 2012

Thank you Tiffany. I hope you get to the "doing" so you can enjoy a beautiful garden full of plants and flowers.

diabeticFoodie

Thursday 20th of September 2012

Gorgeous photos! My basil went crazy this summer too.